"Blackbird, he don't tell the truth,
Blackbird, redbird, diddle-i-Day
You ask for whiskey and you get vermouth
Blackbird, redbird, penny on your head bird
Wake up in the morning, and it's almost dawn

"Jaybird, Jaybird, don't you tell me now lie
Whoever heard of blackbirds, baked in a pie?

from Blackbird, by Jerry Rasmussen

My father used to get a penny from his mother every time he shot a sparrow or a blackbird in her garden. Bounty hunter, he was. That's where this song came from.. My Father also told of cooking sparrows on a stick over an open fire. Musta taken a lot more than 24 sparrows to fill their stomachs. Jerry